Elf Academy by Fiondil

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Chapter 10: Winterdark Tarn

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10: Winterdark Tarn

The afternoon’s nature walk took place at the Mount Horace Holiday Resort, one of the smaller resorts in the area, but blessed with easy access to the lower slopes of Mount Horace. The owners of the resort had carved out several trails, including some cross-country skiing trails.

"They’ll be clearly marked," said Randy Snodgrass, the resort manager, when describing the cross-country trails, "and guides will not be needed, but we have other trails where they will be." He handed them maps of the area with a half dozen trails clearly marked, color coded and given names, such as Snowflake Trail, Aurora Borealis Trail, and (for Glorfindel) the intriguingly named Winterdark Tarn Trail.

"Ah, that is one of the more strenuous trails," Randy explained when Glorfindel asked him about it, "but also one of the most rewarding as it goes past a mountain tarn. It’s a stupendous sight with the mountain range behind it. Very desolate and lonely looking. It’s doubtful that any families will take that particular trail, but we have a lot of adults who come here and that’s one of their favorites."

"Will we be guiding adult-only groups?" Lily asked.

"No," Randy said. "At least not on the trails. They are all well marked and as long as you stick to the trail you eventually come back to the resort. Where we’ll need guides is for our wildlife tours. There is a specific trail for that which is not marked on your maps since what you have is given to our clients. If you’re hired by us or by one of the safari companies with which we are affiliated, we will show you the wildlife trail and teach you what to tell the clients."

"Is it dangerous?" someone asked rather nervously.

"No," Randy replied with a smile. "The trail is constructed in such a way that there is no way for there to be any contact with the wildlife, assuming it’s even seen. Sometimes you don’t see much of anything except tracks and we’ll teach you to recognize them. It’s still a lovely walk regardless."

Then the students were encouraged to pick a trail. Glorfindel took one look at the other Elves and knew they would all want to take the Winterdark Tarn Trail. He had no objections, for it was his desire as well. Naturally, their six Mortal friends decided to tag along.

"How long does it take to walk the Winterdark Tarn Trail?" Glorfindel asked Randy, for though the Elves would have no problems, the Mortals might and there was a time constraint with the bus waiting for them.

Randy glanced over the group, no doubt estimating their physical abilities. "Normally, it takes about three hours, but that’s in the middle of winter when you have to deal with snow and all. In the summer the trail is easier. If you don’t dawdle along the way too much," he gave them a knowing smile, "you should make it back in plenty of time. These trails are a bit more convoluted than the ones in the national park, so we’re allowing for the time it’ll take for people to do them." He glanced at his watch. "If you’re back here by five you’ll be fine."

"That gives us nearly three hours," Daeron said.

Glorfindel nodded. "Let’s go then."

There were cheers from the Mortals and smiles from the Elves. While most of the trails began just behind the main building, two trails began further up the slopes and a funicular was used to bring people to the starting point. They had to wait their turn, as other students had decided to try the higher trails. From what Glorfindel could tell, listening to the students chattering among themselves, most seemed interested in taking the Snow Queen Trail for some reason.

Finally, it was their turn and they piled into the funicular which was a single roller-coaster-type car with five seats, three people to a seat. The passengers sat with their backs to the mountain as the train moved along the tracks. It was a nice way to admire the view as they went up. Once at the top they scrambled out and looked about. They were on a wide plateau surrounded by tall pines. A sign post told them that the Snow Queen Trail was to the right while the Winterdark Tarn Trail went to the left. There were no others about. The Mortals huddled a bit in their jackets, for at this height it was colder than in the valley. The Elves never even noticed.

The Twins led the pack while Glorfindel and Daeron brought up the rear. They were quickly swallowed up by the pine forest around them as the trail wended its way along the side of the mountain, making a gentle but persistent climb. At first, the six Mortals chattered among themselves, oblivious to the serene beauty surrounding them, but after a time the silence of the forest impinged upon them and they fell quiet, much to the relief of the Elves.

They reached a point in the climb where a large pine had fallen across the trail, forcing them to clamber over it. Lily, being the shortest, needed help and Glorfindel pulled her up easily enough. Elrohir helped her find footholds on the tree limbs on the other side. When everyone was back on the trail, Elladan gave Glorfindel an enquiring look and Glorfindel gave him a slight nod.

"You guys are way too slow," Elladan said with a grin. "Roy and I are going to scout ahead. We’ll meet you at the tarn."

"Don’t wander off the path," Glorfindel couldn’t help calling to them as they loped away. The Twins laughed, understanding the reference.

"If we come across any large spiders," Elrohir called back, "we’ll be sure to send them your way."

"Sp-spiders?" Zach stuttered. "I hate spiders. They cr-creep me out."

Glorfindel gave him a sympathetic look. "Me, too, which is why Roy said what he did, but I doubt there are any that are of any danger to us. Okay, everyone ready?" There were nods and murmurs of assent and they set off again with Jud and Shane now leading.

Now the trail was steeper and as they climbed there was a drop-off on their left. The trail narrowed enough at times that they were forced to go single file but for the most part they could walk two or even three abreast. They paused when the forest opened up and they could see more of the mountains. In the open the wind was brisk and the Mortals closed up their jackets which they had opened during the climb. Knit hats and mittens or gloves were pulled out of pockets. Glorfindel noticed with amusement that Nimrodel was making a show of putting on a knit hat herself, though she didn’t bother with gloves. Mithrellas zipped up her coat and gave a convincing shiver. He and Daeron exchanged smiles at the ellith’s pretense.

"We’re going to be leaving the tree line soon," Daeron said, pointing further up the trail and they could see that it left the forest completely with only scrub pine lining the trail on the mountain side. Large rocks and boulders were strewn about and they would have to climb over them. Glorfindel took a look at his map and tried to gauge where they might be.

"The tarn shouldn’t be too far ahead," he said. "Darren, you and Della take the lead. I want the Mo... I mean, everyone else in the middle."

"Hey!" Jud exclaimed in disgust. "We’re not babies, you know." The other Mortals gave him their own disgusted looks.

"I didn’t say you were," Glorfindel replied with a smile. "I want everyone to partner up. No, Lily, you go with Zach. Misty stay with me, okay?"

"A buddy system?" Cassie asked in disbelief. "Are you serious?"

"Very," Glorfindel said and there was no levity in his voice or in his expression. "Those boulders can make for tricky climbing even without snow or ice, so I want everyone to help your partner if needed."

When everyone was with a partner, they set off again, taking it slow as they maneuvered about the rocks. Sometimes there were natural stairs and that made it easy; other times, though, they were confronted with a jumble of granite that had to be navigated with caution. Daeron and Nimrodel were quite good at finding the best route for the Mortals to take. In between climbing rocks the trail would often level off, but now narrow enough that they had to go single file. There was a steep drop on both sides now, but on the right the drop was only a few feet into a dip between the trail and the mountain where scrub pines clung stoically to life. Above them and beyond were the naked granite peaks of the mountains, the higher ones still snow-capped. To their left they could see much of the valley where the resort lay, though that was hidden from them by a spur of the mountain further below.

"I wonder if that’s one of the cross-country skiing trails?" Matt asked as they took a breather. He was pointing down into the valley and they could see a definite trail across an open field.

"Possibly," Jud said. "It must be spectacular in the winter. Everything is so silent, you notice?"

The others nodded. "Well, let’s get on," Daeron said. "We still need to reach the tarn and it’s getting late."

"I hope the Twins are there," Mithrellas said softly to Glorfindel as they brought up the rear.

"They know better than to go any further," Glorfindel said with a smile. "I trained them too well for them to do otherwise."

They continued along the trail for another twenty minutes, clambering over one last jumble of rocks, following the trail around a bend to find themselves before the tarn. They stopped in awe, spreading out on the trail that wound along the shore of the tarn for a better view. Elladan and Elrohir were on the opposite side from where they were and waved at them, but the Mortals paid little heed, too mesmerized by the scenery. The tarn was quite large, perhaps a hundred and fifty feet across at its widest and it was very deep and still, reflecting the mountain peaks. The wind had died down to nothing and now the only sound was their breathing.

"We’ll take a ten minute breather," Glorfindel said quietly, "and then we’ll go on."

Everyone nodded, no one willing to break the utter silence any further than necessary. Glorfindel nodded to the other Elves and walked along the shore to where the Twins waited for them.

"This climb will be tricky in the winter," Elladan said without preamble.

"But doable if care is taken," Daeron answered. "Probably only people with actual mountain climbing experience would take this trail. I imagine the resort owners discourage people with heart conditions and such from it." They all nodded.

"At any rate," Glorfindel said, addressing the Twins, "what are your impressions?"

"Same as the other places," Elladan replied. "With a little work we could awaken some of the trees here, at least further below. I doubt these scrub pines will be of any use."

"There’s something about the tarn, though," Elrohir said soberly. "Dan thinks I’m imagining things, but I think something lives here, something...." He gave them a shrug and an apologetic smile, apparently unable to articulate what he was sensing.

Glorfindel cast his gaze at the scenery. The Mortals were still huddled together on the other side of the tarn. Jud, Zach and Cassie were hunting the ground for flat stones to skip across the water’s surface, while the other three either softly cheered or jeered at their efforts, their voices very quiet, as if they feared to disturb the silence enshrouding them too much. He closed his eyes and blocked out the sounds around him, stilling his own heartbeat and his inner thoughts as he’d been taught so very long ago by the Maiar and reached out with other senses. At first, he could detect nothing of interest. This high up perhaps only mountain goats would thrive, but there were none in the area. Nor were there any birds or small forest creatures. They were all below them on the lower slopes.

No. Nothing of interest, and yet.... He quested further and deeper and then suddenly felt it. It was a tone, deep and continuous, a single note that rang endlessly through the cosmos. He had heard it once in Aman and wondered. Why here? He wasn’t sure. Perhaps he could have heard it anywhere in the world. He’d been told that it was possible, but in some places apparently it was easier to detect. Yet, he didn’t think that this was what Elrohir was sensing, not even on an unconscious level. As skilled as he was, Elrohir simply did not have the ability to hear this particular tone, the final note of the Song of Creation that had brought Eä forth from nothingness by the will of Eru. So, he brought himself closer to the surface of consciousness and....

He opened his eyes and stared at the tarn. Yes, something lived there, something that slept. Something that perhaps should never be wakened. "All right," he suddenly called out in a loud voice, shattering the stillness of the air around them. "Ten minutes are up. Let’s go." He gestured for the Mortals to join them. Zach gave a last throw of a stone, and they all watched it skip across the tarn.

"What is it?" Daeron asked. "Did you sense anything?"

"I don’t know," Glorfindel answered, "but I have a feeling something sleeps here that may not be friendly."

"Like the Watcher in the water?" Elrohir asked, referring to the creature that had haunted the West Gate of Moria.

"No, or perhaps yes." Glorfindel shook his head. "I don’t really know and I don’t really want to stick around to find out."

"Is this place dangerous then?" Mithrellas asked with concern. "If people are coming here...."

"They’ve been coming here for quite some time," Daeron pointed out in a reasonable tone.

"Yes," Glorfindel acknowledged. "But I think it wise that we keep an eye on this place in the future. I’ll plan to come back here every few years to check on it."

By now their friends had reached them and Glorfindel signaled for the Twins to take the lead once again. Almost as soon as they left the tarn, the trail began sloping down and there were no major obstacles along the way. Soon they were making their way along the lower slope, heading back towards the resort.

As they walked, Shane, who happened to be near the back of the group turned to speak to Glorfindel. "You know, that tarn was just a little creepy."

"How do you mean?" he asked, very curious as to what any of the Mortals might have sensed even on a subliminal level.

"Don’t know exactly," she replied with a shrug. "Maybe it was just the utter silence, but all the while we were there I had the feeling we were being watched. It made my skin crawl."

Glorfindel glanced around at the rest of the group. "Did anyone else feel that way?" he asked, but the other Mortals just shrugged or shook their heads.

"I’m not making it up, you know," Shane protested.

Glorfindel shook his head. "No, I don’t think you are."

Shane looked mollified by Glorfindel’s words, but the ellon’s level of unease only increased. They would definitely have to keep an eye on the tarn.

****

When they returned to the campus for dinner they discovered that the display in the cafeteria had been removed.

"That Ms Goodfellow came in, took one look, and ordered us to take it down, confiscating the clothes," one of the staff told them when Glorfindel asked.

"It’s a good thing you took the signatures and email addresses with you, Cassie," Daeron said to the young woman as they made their way down the line.

"And we have the photos as well," Elrohir pointed out.

"Tomorrow we’ll meet in the internet café and send out emails to all the parents," Cassie said with a smirk as she accepted the plate of linguini alfredo from the server.

"We still have to come up with an alternative to the monstrosity they expect us to wear," Nimrodel said with a sigh as they settled themselves at one of the tables. "Any ideas?"

"Hey!" someone yelled from the next table over. They glanced over to see a young man they did not know. "I’m in the other section," he explained and they nodded. "I had the morning off so I went into town. There’s a ski shop with some cool looking outfits. Maybe something along those lines would work. Sure as shooting, we’d freeze our butts off in that fairy queen outfit. Don’t know what the admin is thinking trying to foist that ridiculous outfit on us." He shook his head in disgust.

"Thanks," Glorfindel said. "I’ll go take a look tomorrow." The young man nodded and returned to his dinner and his friends.

"Hmm.... a ski shop," Nimrodel said. "That has possibilities. If we can find color coordinated ski pants and coats...." Her eyes unfocused for a bit as she started thinking.

Glorfindel tapped her hand with his fork. "Eat," he ordered. "The movie will start soon."

"What’s showing tonight, anyone know?" Lily asked but no one had a clue.

When they had finished their dinner and were settled in their seats once again for the movie, none of the Elves were at all surprised when it turned out to be Loch Ness.

"Now I’m getting creeped out," Elrohir whispered.

Glorfindel was in total agreement.